Dice-K looked pretty good today. His fastball definitely lost some velocity but he had real good movement on his pitches, I don't expect it to continue as this is classic Dice-K though Looks dominant for a start or two and then can't locate the broad side of a barn the next 3._________________
RTR
#JDI

I don't mind the Ellsbury-in-the-3-slot experiment. Nothing to lose, and perhaps a lineup shuffle will help him rediscover some power (I doubt it though). I like shutting down Ortiz -- good move. Let's see some auditioning for next season. The basic things to keep an eye on are Ellsbury's stretch performance, Ross's close to the season as a precursor to a re-signing, Ciriaco's audition for next year as a possible shortstop, getting Bailey some innings, and Doubront auditioning for a slot next year.

At this point, I think Lester, Buchholz, and Lackey (because of his contract) should be the only three guys guaranteed rotation spots. Doubront has gotten progressively worse as the season has gone on, but he's pitched to the level of a number 5...something we don't need._________________

animaltested wrote:

On a scale from Kitten to Hitler, being close minded about music, and only listening to one or two genres is about a Boss Tweed.

Figure Ellsbury, Aceves, Bailey, Bard, Morales, and the other minor arb guys double our 2013 commitment. We're still only at about 86M. That's about half of this year's payroll. We would have plenty of room to sign Ortiz and Ross if we so choose. I honestly think Ortiz will be back. 3/40 isn't out of the realm of possibility for him.

Also, isn't it fun to root against Josh Beckett? He's that guy I wanted off the team so I could root against him. 5.2 IP, 7 hits, 3 ER, 3 BB, 6 K, 1 HR debut for LA on Monday night. I hope they get nothing but mediocrity out of him._________________

animaltested wrote:

On a scale from Kitten to Hitler, being close minded about music, and only listening to one or two genres is about a Boss Tweed.

Lavarnways looked real good tonight. What do you guys think his future on the team is? Could he possibly replace Papi at DH next year or do you see him transitioning to 1st?

Catcher of the future.

I think we resign Ortiz. Still don't know what we do about 1B.

You dont think they'll bring back Salty?

He's got one arb year left before he's a free agent. They'll either let him walk in free agency, decline to make an offer this offseason and let him walk, or trade him. The only positive aspect of his game is his power. He sucks as a whole offensively and is one of the worst in the league behind the plate. He makes Pierzynski look like a good defensive catcher._________________

animaltested wrote:

On a scale from Kitten to Hitler, being close minded about music, and only listening to one or two genres is about a Boss Tweed.

Also, isn't it fun to root against Josh Beckett? He's that guy I wanted off the team so I could root against him. 5.2 IP, 7 hits, 3 ER, 3 BB, 6 K, 1 HR debut for LA on Monday night. I hope they get nothing but mediocrity out of him.

There's still a soft spot in my heart for Josh Beckett after what he did in 07. I always had a love-hate relationship with him but I'll be rooting him on.

Harper41 wrote:

PatsPwn wrote:

Harper41 wrote:

Lavarnways looked real good tonight. What do you guys think his future on the team is? Could he possibly replace Papi at DH next year or do you see him transitioning to 1st?

Catcher of the future.

I think we resign Ortiz. Still don't know what we do about 1B.

You dont think they'll bring back Salty?

I could see Salty and Lav splitting time at catcher next year with Lavarnway taking over full time in 2014._________________

He looks to be a valuable third starter going forward. Problem is...we don't have another guy besides Lester to slot in in front of him. Lester still has a 3.61 xFIP, which is better than last season by a hundredth of a point. That's a low-end number 2._________________

animaltested wrote:

On a scale from Kitten to Hitler, being close minded about music, and only listening to one or two genres is about a Boss Tweed.